


It Just Comes Naturally

by IWillBeYourPet



Category: True Blood (TV)
Genre: A little PTSD, Alcide and Sookie are just friends, Alpha Alcide, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anal Sex, Bottom Sam, Dom/sub, Dom/sub Undertones, Dominance, Good pack alpha Alcide, Humiliation, I'm just gonna make up the way werewolves and shifters work as I please, Lots of shifting, M/M, Mentions of past abuse, Mentions of past threats of non con but they did not happen, Needy Sam, Oral Sex, Pack Dynamics, Pack Feels, Panic Attacks, Please do not post to other sites copy or translate this work, Power Imbalance, Sam and Sookie are just friends, Sam needs a pack, Sam needs affection, Scenting, Submissive Sam, Top Alcide, sam is a mess, slight bullying
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:09:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27508129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IWillBeYourPet/pseuds/IWillBeYourPet
Summary: **All WIPs on temp hiatus**Things have settled and Alcide has become close (in a fully platonic way) with Sookie and her circle of friends.Though they had been getting along Alcide notices that Sam is becoming increasingly hostile towards him, and thinks that Sam is just being a jerk and decides to confront him.  However, it is much, much more complicated than that.Some Sam whump, lots of Sam coddling.  And eventually smut.Please do not post to other sites, copy or translate this work.
Relationships: Alcide Herveaux/Sam Merlotte
Comments: 4
Kudos: 26





	1. Chapter 1

Sookie and Alcide had barely made it in the door of Merlotte’s when Sam was waving her over, glaring daggers at the werewolf, and she sighed. “Give me a minute Alcide.”

Sam watched Alcide like a hawk as Sookie came over to talk and as soon as they were around the corner of the hallway and out of view he snarled, “He’s not welcome here.”

“Sam.” The more Alcide had been around them the edgier Sam had gotten, and she knew he didn’t like werewolves and was almost certain it wasn’t about her, but it was still out of character for Sam to be so hostile. “What is your problem?”  
“I don’t want a werewolf in my bar.”

She looked at him and the echoes in his brain were loud, ‘ _ werewolf, fucking alpha werewolf, coming on my territory, i am NOT afraid of him’ _ She was quiet too long and Sam stumbled back a step, shoving a finger in her face, “Stay the fuck out of my head Sookie!”

“Alcide is our friend Sam, you ain’t gotta be afraid of him.”

“I am not afraid.” He stomped forward, “There are other resturants in this town Sookie, you don’t have to come here to parade your newest fuck.”

“Alcide and I are just friends-”

“So she says about literally every man she has fucked.”

Her face crumbled at the words and he didn’t stay to see what she was going to say as he stomped back ( _ retreated) _ to his office. 

Sookie was in shock for a few moments before she went back to Alcide, sniffling and the man was on his feet immediately. “Sookie, what happened?”

She motioned towards the door, “Sam doesn’t want you here, I think it’s best if we just go.” Alcide reached up to wipe away a tear and a growl rose up in his throat as he looked the way Sam had gone.

“Alcide, no.”

He gently pressed Sookie back to the table, “If he’s got a problem with me he can take it up with me.”

“Please don’t start anything.”

“I’m just gonna have a talk with him.” The growl deepened as he headed to the back.

Sookie sighed, sitting at the booth, resigned that nothing would be solved till they fought it out. Fucking boys. 

He strode through the place with his full alpha swagger and no one tried to stop him. He didn’t need to be told where Sam was, he could smell him. It figured it was going to come to something like this eventually. The more he was around Sookie, around her friends, the stranger Sam acted. He had noticed it, the man ducking out when he arrived, not coming near him at all, could smell the hostility from him. He knew Sam didn’t like wolves, especially after the run in with Marcus, but he had thought they were getting over it. For a few weeks him and Sam had gotten along great, he didn’t know what changed. 

It didn’t matter though, he wasn’t gonna stand by while the man talked to Sookie like that, upset her. He cared about her like she was family. The door was closed but that didn’t stop him as he threw it open, startling the smaller man. 

“We need to talk.” He was growling, he couldn’t stop it, not when he could picture Sookie’s face. 

“Get the fuck out of my office.” Sam had scrambled to the far side of the desk when Alcide entered, eyes wide.

He didn’t listen, stalking forward until Sam came around the other side of the desk, and Sam might be faster than a human but he wasn’t faster than a wolf. So when he made a dash for the door Alcide was in his way. He grabbed his shirt as he snarled out, “How dare you talk like that to Sookie, if you want to start shit with me then be a man and do it to my face.” He was in Sam’s face and his eyes flashed wolf, and of all the things he expected to happen, Sam dropping to his knees was not one of them.

He was forced to let go of his shirt and took a step back, looking down at the man. Sam was glaring at him, fists clenched, his scent a mess of frustration and fear, submission and anger. 

A familiar combination actually and suddenly he understood. Alcide nodded, “Well, I think I know what’s happening, Sam.” He took a few steps back to grab the door to the office and shut it, giving them privacy before moving in front of Sam. “Are you up for having a talk?” His voice had calmed, the anger fading away because he knew exactly what the man was doing, how little control the man had over it, and he felt bad that he hadn’t realized it before. He just never expected it to affect a shifter. 

There was a growl from Sam, so frustrated, and Alcide nodded at that. “Can’t say no, can ya.” He crouched down in front of him so they were eye level trying to be less of a threat, but that just made Sam whimper and hunch his shoulders. 

“Oh boy, you are scared.” 

“I’m not scared of you.” It lacked the bite though, and to be fair if Alcide had to guess he would say that the man probably wasn’t so much scared of him as of what was happening. Or that he didn’t know what was happening more likely.

“I’m going to touch you.” He didn’t wait for an answer as he grabbed Sam’s arms and pulled him to his feet. It made Sam’s whole body tense up, a spike of undeniable fear, “Come on, untuck that little tail, nothing bad is gonna happen.” He backed him up until Sam hit the desk and nudged him until the man sat on it. 

Once he was sure he would stay there he took a few steps backwards, giving him space. “This been happening for a while Sam?”

The resentment was still there, but the anger was fading. Sam tried to talk twice before he managed to, “What is happening?”

“I’m an Alpha, the pack master. And I think maybe  _ your _ alpha.”

“I’m not a werewolf.”

“I know, I’m just as surprised as you are that you’re having this reaction, Sam. Honest to god. I’m not trying to do anything to you, it's just spill over.”

Sam searched his face for a long time and it occurred to him that Sookie was being very patient. He wondered how long it would last. Sam’s eyes averted and his voice was soft. “A few weeks ago. I started to feel…” He glanced up at Alcide before back to the floor.

“That why you been so hostile with me? Nothing to do with Sookie?”

There was real surprise as he shook his head, “No, I’m glad she has friends. The closer I was to you, the worse it feels.” He shifted his weight, uncomfortable trying to explain. “It felt like I was challenging you, just doing nothing. And that didn’t feel… good.”

“Okay.” Sam wasn’t saying it, but Alcide could read between the lines. The man felt compelled to submit and when he didn’t it probably felt terrible. He watched him carefully and did what he would do with one of his pack that was stressed out. He pressed out that force that made him a werewolf, warm and comforting and he could see Sam’s shoulders ease, the ball of anxiety the man was, calm. “Ah, there we go. Wasn’t sure if that would work or not.”

There was a knock on the door and they both looked to it, Sookie’s voice coming through, “I don’t want to interrupt but I’m worried you might have killed each other.”

“I will be out in a minute, darlin’.” He nudged Sam’s leg.

“It’s fine Sookie.” He hesitated, “I’m sorry.”

“Okay.” She didn’t sound entirely happy about it, but eventually they heard her walk away. 

Alcide waited until he was sure that she was gone and turned his attention back to Sam. “Feel any better?”

“What is going on?” His voice wobbled and Alcide’s instincts told him to touch, to comfort his pack, and he made himself step back because he didn’t think Sam would appreciate that right now.

“How about I come back tonight after you close and we can talk. Go for a run?”

He thought Sam might argue that, demand answers now, but he looked a bit like he was in a daze and nodded. Despite his better judgement Alcide moved forward into his space, cupping Sam’s face in his hands and tilting it up so he could meet his eyes. “I think I can fix what has been happening, okay?”

“Okay.” There it was, through the daze Sam looked hopeful and even after he dropped his hands Sam still met his eyes. “I’m sorry for what I said.”

“Nothing to be sorry for, this supernatural shit is unpredictable. But it’s gonna be okay.” He moved towards the door, and waited for Sam to follow him. He didn’t want to push him but he waited until he was close, “I know you’re prickly right now, but I’m trying to gauge this Sam. Do you feel better right now than you did? Whatever that bad feeling you’ve been having… is it better?”

Sam nodded, his face open and vulnerable. Alcide had to resist rolling his eyes, the man was such a creme puff, thank god he wasn’t a wolf. He’d get torn apart. 

He took the man at his word, and at least that proved that he was right about what he thought. Or he wouldn’t have been able to calm him. Sam followed him down the hallway to the bar where Sookie was waiting anxiously. 

“Come on, let’s sit down and order some food, I’m starving.”

She looked expectantly at him but he just gave her a smile and moved past her heading towards the table. Leaving her with just Sam. Her mouth thinned, she hadn’t forgotten what he said. “Sam.”

Sam looked down at the ground, “Sookie… I didn’t mean…”

Alcide took pity on him, and he was starting to see why Sookie had a soft spot for the man. He touched Sookie’s arm, “It wasn't his fault Sook, he couldn’t help it, supernatural werewolf thing.”

“What does that mean?”

“It’s between me and him and we’re gonna fix it, but it ain’t his fault.”

She looked back to Sam and finally the frown fell off her face. She jabbed him in the chest, “Fine. But if you talk to me like that again Sam Merlotte, I’m gonna punch you in the nose.”

“Understood.”

She gave him one more hard look that made him smile and then went to back to Alcide. Sam watched them for a moment before he swallowed hard and went back to work. He muttered to Holly that he was gonna be in the back, he needed a minute. 

He was ashamed at what happened, his reaction, but he hadn’t been able to stop it. He was used to crazy shit going on, things that he couldn’t explain, and he knew this was one of them. With Alcide’s anger directly on him, with the man touching him, every single part of him had screamed at him to submit. And he had, though he thought he might have been able to fight it. He didn’t want to. And once he submitted, after whatever Alcide had done to him, that sick feeling had quieted. Put him at peace. He scrubbed a hand over his face, and sighed, what the fuck was he getting himself in to. 


	2. Chapter 2

The restaurant had been closed for almost an hour and Sam sat on one of the stumps and he was starting to feel like a moron. Was starting to wonder if Alcide had just been fucking with him. He was going to leave, he really was, but there was some tug at his instincts that told him to stay put. Because he had been told to. He kicked the ground and muttered, “Fucking werewolves.” Even as he said it a scent reached his nose and he tilted his head up, sniffing the air and turned towards the woods as a large white wolf pushed through the trees. Carrying a bag in his mouth. 

He slid off the stump, sniffing again as the wolf moved closer, and he tried to relax. He knew it was Alcide, could smell him, and stood his ground as the wolf approached him, dropping the bag nearby. There was that feeling again and to combat it he crossed his arms over his stomach, “You’re late.”

In the blink of an eye Alcide shifted back, naked and tall and they were standing too close. Sam had to look way up to meet his eyes, fuck the man was big. They were practically touching and Alcide grinned at him, “I’d avoid the kneeling right now, sends a bit of the wrong message.”

Sam had never been shy about nudity, but he glanced down at the man and his face flushed, and he couldn’t believe he was blushing and it made him turn his glare to Alcide, who chuckled. “Just trying to lighten the mood, Sam. It took time to get away from Sookie. She knew something was up and she’s nosy as fuck.”

“Do you wanna go inside and talk?” 

“Let’s run first. You got something that can keep up with me?” There was a spike of excitement in the air from Sam and Alcide tilted his head as he looked at him, and his voice lowered, softened. “You don’t get to run with others often, do you?”

Sam took a few steps back as he started to unbutton his shirt, ignoring the question. Alcide didn’t think he needed any wolf ability to see how lonely the man was, he should have asked Sam to run before this. Sam reached the button on his pants and hesitated, glancing at Alcide for a moment before he shifted into his preferred collie form. 

Alcide couldn’t help laughing, “Shit, come here.” He reached out to pet him and his hand was nearly the size of his head. “Aren’t you just cute as fuck.” Sam’s fur puffed up, a line down his back, and Alcide gave him a playful shove away. “Calm yourself, I just expected something… bigger.” 

He shifted back to wolf and approached Sam. The collie abruptly tucked his tail and sat down, he wasn’t even half the size of Alcide. He moved into his space and pressed his snout against the side of his head, snuffling, before he moved back. Sam was still stiff, fearful. Alcide backed up more and yipped at him, giving a play bow and though Sam’s tail was still tucked there was a small wag. 

Alcide lunged forward and knocked Sam over, sending the collie rolling, tail over snout. By the time Sam scrambled to his paws Alcide was already running, taking off into the woods. With a wild yip, a happy sound, Sam scurried into the woods after him.

He wasn’t sure how long it had been before he finally stopped to rest in a field, waiting for Sam to catch up. The collie was slower, but he was nimble enough. Fit the man, too. The little he knew about Sam he wouldn’t have bought some big growling breed. Something with brute. There was a crash in the woods and Sam spilled into the clearing, tail up and wagging as he scanned for Alcide. 

When he reached him he skittered to a stop, crouching low in front of him, and it was so much more natural for him to submit when they were in these forms. Alcide lowered his ears, giving a low grumble and Sam responded by rolling on to his back, his tail tucked up against him, showing his belly.

Alcide shifted back to human, kneeling down on the ground next to him and without thinking too much reached out to rub Sam’s belly, scratching through the fur. For a moment he was worried he’d crossed a line but Sam’s tail was wagging. He scratched behind his ears and then sat back on his heels. “You make such a good dog, Sam. I already liked ya, but this makes me like ya more. Alright, time to shift, doggie.”

Sam whined like he didn’t want to, but he shifted, and looked up at Alcide from his back. He whined again, rolling over onto his hands and knees before sitting back on to the ground. He pulled his knees up and wrapped his arms around them. 

Belatedly Alcide realized that maybe they should have gone back to the bar so they could have clothes during this conversation. He didn’t mind the nudity but he wasn’t sure about Sam. “I kind of forgot about the clothes part.”

Sam shook his head, hair whipping around like fur, “I don’t mind.” He looked at Alcide from under his fringe, “What is happening, Alcide?”

There was no reason to beat around the bush, he wanted to be honest with the other man. “What you are describing sounds like the way a rogue wolf feels when they join a pack and they aren’t dominant enough to hold their own but are refusing to submit.” He eyed Sam, “Wolves… dogs… they like the order of a hierarchy. You understand?”

Sam was staring at the ground, refusing to look at Alcide. “You are saying it's because I’m weak.”

“No, Sam. That isn’t what I mean. Dominance doesn’t equal strong, submissive doesn’t equal weak. If you belonged to a pack you’d-”

“I’m not weak, I’ve taken care of myself for a long time all by myself, I don’t need to belong to anything!” Before Alcide could even try to comfort him, to calm him down, Sam shifted and took off running.

Alcide watched the beagle puppy clear the edge of the field into the woods and sighed. The choice of shift was telling. He knew from Sookie it was the first thing Sam had shifted in to, had a good idea that it was what the man shifted into when he was too emotional to think. Well, he better go catch the pup before he got too far or got eaten by a crocodile.

He shifted and took off after Sam and it didn’t take long to catch up to him. He didn’t stop his stride as he reached him, grabbing him by the scruff and picking him up. The puppy squealed, whimpering, as he wiggled but Alcide kept his grip. A growl trickled from his throat and Sam went still, just the occasional whimper as they headed through the woods. 

When they reached Merlotte’s he went to the door and dropped Sam in a pile, giving him a grumble when he tried to crawl away. He shifted back to human and rummaged through Sam’s clothes until he found keys and unlocked the door. He reached down to grab Sam and pick him up, holding the puppy against his body as he moved in the bar and locked the door.

He dropped the keys on a table and lifted up the puppy to look in Sam’s face. That stupid puppy dog face. “You know that this doesn’t sway me right?”

There was a small puppy tail wagging, and a puppy lick to his cheek and Alcide narrowed his eyes at him. He headed to the office, kicking open the door and tossed the puppy onto the couch. There was a little yelp before the puppy settled. “Shift.”

Sam watched him and then turned a few times, laying down in a puppy ball, resting his head on his paws. The most defiant looking puppy Alcide had ever seen. “Shift, now.” There was no reaction and Alcide sighed. “Okay, but, you ain’t gonna be happy that I can do this Sam.”

Sam’s head came up at Alcide’s approach. He reached out and touched Sam and with a wail that started as a puppy whimper and ended up as a grown man whimpering Sam was suddenly huddled on the couch, back to his human self. Alcide didn’t let it show but he was a little surprised, he hadn’t been sure it would work like it did with his wolves. He raised an eye at the panting man, nose twitching at the fear filling the room, “Guess shifters and wolves aren’t really all that different.”

“What did you do?” Sam was whimpering, huddled in on himself.

“I'm an alpha, my pack is at my whim. I can make them shift when I want to.” Alcide watched him for a moment before turning. “I’m going to go get our clothes, please don’t go anywhere Sam, okay?” There was a nod and he was sure the man would listen. He went to get their clothes mostly just to give Sam a few minutes to get himself together. 

By time he got back Sam wasn’t sniffling anymore and he looked up when Alcide entered the room. “I’m sorry I ran.” Alcide tossed him his clothes and the man grabbed them, quietly getting dressed. Once he did he swallowed hard enough that Alcide could see his throat work and then moved forward, kneeling carefully in front of Alcide. 

“I expected a fight when I got you back here.”

Sam tugged at the bottom of his shirt, “I’m not a werewolf, why is this happening?”

Alcide dropped a hand to his head, petting him. “I’m not entirely sure Sam, but I have an idea. You aren’t a wolf, but you are a shifter, and one with strong ties to being a dog. I think you crave pack, I think the dog in you does and you created one with the humans you are around. Once I started dating Sookie, once we became friends, it made me part of that pack.”

“You’re not my pack.”

Alcide’s first reaction to the words was to lash out, he wanted to shove the man down to the ground and bare his teeth until he showed his throat, but he pushed back the urge. The words weren’t angry, weren’t defiant. They were lonely and sad. They were a plea, even if the other man might not know it.

So instead he crouched down, carding fingers through Sam’s hair, treating him like a hurt pack member. “If that was true, you wouldn’t feel this way. I wouldn’t be able to force your shift. Like it or not Sam, we crossed some kind of supernatural lines here, and it is what it is.”

Sam looked up at him and there was so much need on his face. “I’m… I’m not weak.”

“You are not. That's not what this is about. I’m going to do something, and you aren’t going to like it, but I just want to show you, okay?” Sam nodded, no hesitation, and it was almost frightening how little it took to convince him. He was so soft. Shit, he couldn’t believe that something hadn’t already swooped in and claimed the man.

He wasn’t lying when he said Sam wasn’t going to like this. He pushed out a challenge at Sam, not something that could be explained in human words, but something the animal in them would know. The blonde cried out and dropped to the ground, whining as he rolled to his back and tilted his head, showing his throat. Alcide nodded, “When a new wolf joins the pack, when a youngun ages up, we do this to test what kind of wolf they are. Dominants go on the attack, submissives roll over. Most wolves are submissive Sam, you can’t have an entire pack of alphas.” He watched the man not moving even after the challenge, watched him continue to submit as he panted nervously. “That wouldn’t have worked if you weren’t pack.”

It was one question solved but the fact that Sam didn’t get back up, didn’t ease off after he stopped challenging was a whole different question. “Hey, come here.” He sat down on the floor and let Sam half get up, and half manhandled him into his lap. He could smell the man getting huffy at it, but he shh’d him and cuddled him close, petting him and pushing out his influence in full force. Comforting him, soothing him. 

Sam’s reaction was different than a wolves though, the man pressed against him, rubbing like a cat, and Alcide tightened his hold but let him continue. Sam pressed his whole body against him, eyes closed, until he finally settled tucked in tight against Alcide. And still left his throat bared. What the fuck was he going to do with him. Maybe someone older in the pack would know more, though he’d have to be careful about keeping Sam safe. He was too soft for werewolf life.

He shuffled so his back was to the couch and got comfortable, holding on to Sam. This was all much more complicated than he thought it was going to be. Whatever lines got crossed didn’t go one way, now that he had tapped into it - realized it - Sam pulled at his heart and his wolf like he was a pack member. He connected with Sam, and shit, all he could feel was how desperately lonely he was. And he couldn’t turn his back on it. 

Alcide rocked the man back and forth a little, like rocking a child. “You know, I get this side of you. Sookie said you used to be a lot more… gentle. That life had been rough on you the last year or two. That true?” Sam nodded against him. “I think you’re still that gentle Sam, you’ve just worked real hard to protect yourself.” He rested his chin on Sam’s head, “I like the gentle side I think. I’d like to see it more. Maybe if you feel safer it will show more.”

“You said we can fix this.” Sam’s voice was so hesitant, so small. “Do you mean that you can make it so I don’t feel like pack to you anymore?”

“You are one sad puppy, Sam.” He nuzzled against him. “No, I think that is probably something that just is. What we can fix, though, is you feeling like shit when you are around me. So you will just feel like uh, a happy pack member around me.”

“How.” His relief was evident in his voice, “What do I have to do.”

And yea, because he was curious he couldn’t stop the question, “What  _ would  _ you do?”

He was already cursing himself for fucking with Sam, he usually wasn’t one to kick someone when they were down and prepared to calm Sam, but there was no tensing, no anger. Just a resigned sigh, “Anything.” And he really meant it, Alcide could feel it. Oh, he definitely needed to keep an eye on Sam around the wolves. 

“It’s simple, Sam. You bow to me as your alpha, submit to me. That’s all.” He thought over how the night had gone, “Not too much more than what you have already done tonight, just with intention.”

“Now?”

“No, it would need to be at…” He trailed off, because,  _ fuck _ . “It needs to be at our pack space.” He rubbed his hand over his face, how was he going to manage that?

“With the wolves?” Sam’s voice shook as he said it, enough fear to drown in, and Alcide could at least be certain that the pack had made an impression on Sam the last time he had been there. Being tortured. 

“You don’t got to be afraid Sam. I’m the pack master, you will be safe with me.” He’d have to figure out how to explain it to the pack, but that was his problem. “You know the pack already appreciates that you were willing to die to protect me. That made an impact on them.”

“She said she’d kill me if I ever showed my face again.”

“I know, it’s okay though, Martha was grieving. You will be safe with me. I will talk to the pack tomorrow morning and figure it out.” They had skipped over at least one part that he brought his attention back around to, “You are okay with that Sam, submitting?”

He nodded, voice so soft, “I already am.”

“Yes, you are.” He took a long sniff of him, “Submission smells good on you.” He didn’t know what compelled him to say that, but it was true. Sam felt small and warm in his arms and he kind of wanted to know how serious he was about the  _ anything _ . 

“Alcide?”

“Time to call it a night.” He tried to push him off his lap but Sam resisted, trying to meet his eyes. 

“Did I do something wrong?”

“No.”

Sam let himself be moved off Alcide’s lap to the floor but he looked lost. “You went cold.” Alcide got to his feet, but Sam stayed where he was looking at him. 

“Get up.”

“Are you mad at me because you’re hard?”

Alcide snarled and dragged Sam to his feet, shoving him against the wall, “You have no idea what you are talking about.”

“I’m not a wolf, but I’m a shifter and I can smell when someone has a hard on.” He put his hands up defensively and Alcide didn’t even realize he had moved like he was going to strike him. Sam lost the bravado as he whimpered, “Please don’t be mad. If it will make you happy I can do whatever you want.” Desperation seeped through the words and it gave a bitter smell to the air.

Alcide wasn’t embarrassed that he was turned on, but he was uncomfortable about it. He had wolves submissive to him all the time and never reacted to it, but there was something about Sam, the way he submitted. The softness that made him take interest. And that made him feel like he was somehow taking advantage. He grabbed Sam’s hand and pushed them down, holding his wrists when he tried to pull away. “I’m not mad. Yeah, having a warm wiggling body in my lap felt good. That’s all, Sam.” He knew he was intentionally downplaying why he was attracted, but he just wanted Sam to not be scared. 

Sam’s eyebrows were pulled together, frantic, as he searched Alcide’s face. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for but he held steady and let him take his time. Sam finally nodded and looked away but he didn’t seem any happier. Alcide sniffed the air and he was so stupid sometimes. He wasn’t sure how he had missed that Sam was hard too, but he was gonna leave it alone. He was sure it would just embarrass the man. 

“Okay, you need to get some sleep. Tomorrow I will talk with my pack and we can figure out how I’m gonna do this. There need to be witnesses, but I’m going to have to make sure that they are… well under control.”

“There’s something wrong with the way I react, isn’t there?”

He grumbled but it was a sound of frustration, “Nothing wrong, just different. I’m being extra careful, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

Sam eased back against the wall. “Will I see you tomorrow?”

“Sure. I’ll come check on you. Depending on how it goes with the pack we might be able to do this tomorrow. I think the sooner the better.” He let go of Sam and stepped back, “I’m gonna go home and try to get some sleep, gotta pour concrete early. You do the same.”

They walked out together, Alcide watching the woods as Sam locked up and turned to him. Sam took a half step towards him before he stopped, looking unsure and averted his eyes. Alcide gave a half smile and pulled Sam into a hug, and could feel the man melt against him, holding on like he was a life line. 

He finally pulled back and held Sam at arms length before he reached up to pat his cheek, “Sleep, got it? I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow.”

Alcide nodded and headed for his truck, it had been a hell of a night.


	3. Chapter 3

Martha had been staring at him for a solid 4 minutes and he would be damned if he was going to be the one to break it. Her eyes narrowed and finally she threw up her hands, “Please tell me you are joking.”

“I wish I was.” He leaned back in his chair, “I’m telling you though Martha, he is reacting like he’s a pack member. He’s been losing his mind when he’s been near me like a rogue wolf. He can feel the pull, I did the dominance test and he responded,” He leaned in closer, “I can make him shift. Have you ever heard anything like this before?”

She shook her head, “No, our kind aren’t exactly forthcoming about information, though.” She eyed him and rolled her eyes, “What else? I can see something is on your mind.”

“He responds but … different than a wolf. I challenged and he submitted-”

“No surprise there.”

Alcide gave her a look and she motioned at him to continue, “He submitted but after I stopped challenging he stayed down until I physically moved him. When I use alpha on him he gets very… clingy.”

She took it in, and he could see her mind working through it. “And why is it so important that you fix whatever is wrong with him? Why is this our problem?”

“He’s my friend and he’s suffering.” She already looked like she was gonna say she didn’t care and he continued, “And I can feel it like I would pack. I think if you see him you will too. I don’t know what happened but my wolf is telling me that I’m abandoning a pack member.”

“Okay. Take me to see him, if I feel what you are saying, I will convince the pack.”

“I don’t need your permission to do this.”

“No, you don’t. But without a good explanation or understanding bringing a shifter to the pack and doing this will upset them and I know you don’t want that.” She stood up, “Come on, take me to see your little shifter.”

He knew it was the only way, that his best chance of not blowing up in his face was to bring her, but he was reluctant. And he knew why. “Martha, I don’t know how to say it other than he’s soft. And he’s terrified of the wolves, you in particular. Please be nice when we go.”

“Of course. You know we don’t have a problem with him, he lied to the pack but he was trying to protect you. That is a lot of loyalty. You weren’t pack yet, but it still matters.”

They got in his truck and he pulled out his phone, debating if he should call Sam and let him know that they were on the way. He glanced at Martha and tucked his phone away. He was sure the other man would prefer to know, to prepare himself, but he was going to count on his reaction being more persuasive if he was unprepared. 

The drive was mostly quiet, and he was thankful when they reached the restaurant. It wasn’t just because Martha made him kind of uncomfortable, it was because he wanted to see Sam. He could admit it. 

He got out of the truck and was halfway to the door when he realized Martha wasn’t following him and he turned to see her scenting the air, looking around. She met his eyes, “I smell pack, it’s not quite right but … still smells like pack Alcide.”

“It’s him, I told you. Something got fucked.”

And suddenly Martha was genuinely curious, “Interesting.”

Alcide put his hand on the door and started to open it but closed it again, “Please be nice Martha, he’s skittish.”

“You’re so protective of him.” He was going to point out that he could do without the snark but she looked like she meant something by that, that she was serious.

He shrugged it off and headed in. The place looked slow and Sam was at the bar facing away from him, talking to the bartender. His head lifted up, clearly scenting and when he turned to Alcide he was grinning but as his eyes scanned over to Martha the smile fell away. He slammed back into the bartop, attracting attention and Alcide was moving. 

“Stay.” Sam had been about to bolt but at the command he froze and it only took a few long strides to be in front of him. “It’s okay, I promise. We all just need to talk.”

“Alcide…”

“It’s okay, you are safe.” He touched his wrist, skin against skin, and Sam looked up to meet his eyes before he nodded. “Don’t wanna make a scene okay.”

“The back office.” Sam motioned at the man working, “I’ll be right back.” Alcide didn't let go of Sam’s wrist but motioned to Martha and kept hold of Sam as they headed back. 

Sam glanced at Martha a few times, fear heavy in his scent, but there was nothing Alcide could do about it until they were behind closed doors. Once in the office he let go of Sam, who skittered to the other side of the desk, and he shut the door after Martha came in. 

Sam was clearly trying to keep his cool, and to a normal person he might seem fine, but all of them could smell the fear in the room. Alcide and Martha exchanged a look before he turned his attention to Sam. “Come here.”

He didn’t resist the command and came to his side, though his eyes were showing a lot of white and he couldn’t stop looking at Martha, and her lips twisted. “Can you calm him then, before he pisses himself? It was a mess last time.”

Sam flushed at that, and Alcide pulled him closer, looking over him at Martha and mouthed ‘be nice’. She grinned at him and headed further in the office, but her body language said she already agreed with Alcide’s observation. He did as she asked though, pressing out his influence just a little to try to calm Sam, and he could feel the man’s heart rate slow down. And with it, like he said, Sam pushed into his space. Huddling against him.

“I want to challenge him.”

“I already told you how he reacted. I can do it again if you’d like.”

“I want to do it. I want to feel how he responds.” She moved closer to Sam and watched him hard, “I want to know if it is a reaction to pack or to you.”

Until she gave him a questioning look he didn’t realize that he was growling and he abruptly stopped. Confusion had him grabbing Sam and shoving him towards Martha a little harder than he meant to and he stumbled. Martha caught Sam’s arm and the two of them stared at each other. 

Alcide finally snarled, “Go ahead, do it.”

Martha let go of his arm and pushed at him, challenged him, and Alcide wasn’t sure what was going to happen until Sam hit the ground, belly up. Just like he had with Alcide.

Martha took a step back in shock that it had worked and then stepped forward, reaching down to touch him. Sam’s fear spiked and he whined and by time she touched him he had shifted, beagle tail tucking with puppy whines.

She made a soft sound of surprise, and picked up the puppy, “He’s so scared.” 

“I told you.”

She may be hard but who could resist a puppy. She held him close, petting his head before she sighed and set him down. He sat nicely, whining as he looked up at her. “Will you shift back, Sam? We need to talk.” The puppy looked to Alcide who nodded and then Sam was sitting at her feet. She reached down and held his face with her hands and her face had softened. “I felt that connection with you pup, did you feel me?” Sam nodded. “You are safe with me, do you feel that too?” There was some hesitation but another nod from Sam and she gave him a small smile before she backed up. Alcide moved up and pushed out his influence to Sam, and as soon as he touched him the man turned into him, rubbing against his legs.

“This is what I was talking about.” Martha looked entertained which just aggravated Alcide. “So, you saw for yourself. Did you feel him when you challenged.”

“I did. And I see what you mean, he is lonely.” She shoved off the desk, “I’m going to go out and order us some food and then I will get on the phone.” She tussled Sam’s hair as she passed, “We can probably do this tonight.”

“Thank you Martha.” Once they were shut back in the office he sighed. “I’m sorry I didn’t call and warn ya Sam. If she wasn’t going to go for it, this would be much more difficult. Come on, up to your feet.”

He scanned Sam up and down, before he muttered, “Go ahead and get dressed, smart dog winning her over with the puppy. Was that intentional?”

Sam glanced up from where he was pulling on his pants, “No, it just happened.” He rubbed his face on his sleeve, “And for the record I didn’t piss myself when they had me because I was scared of them, it wasn’t like they were offering up bathroom breaks.”

“You’re embarrassed.” 

“Wouldn’t you be?” Sam was dressed but still played with the buttons, not looking up. “It’s stupid since with just a thought you can have me belly up, but I don’t want you to hear how weak I’ve been.”

“Hey.” Alcide hugged him, “You survived being captured by the pack, and took a hell of a beating covering for me. Ain’t nobody think you’re weak, Sam.” He couldn’t miss the look towards the way Martha had gone, “She likes you. She’s an alpha, in her younger days she would have taken over the pack. You’d be stupid if you weren’t scared of her. We all are.”

He was trying to keep it light, keep Sam from getting too worked up. He couldn’t help touching him, hands cupping Sam’s face to make him look up. Their eyes met and held until it made Sam whine, and he tried to kneel. “Ah, right. Too sensitive for all that eye contact, huh?”

“Will it always be like this?”

“I’m not sure, but I don’t think so. Once we do this bow down thing it will be gentler, but maybe more constant. Though… you are kind of unpredictable.”

Sam licked his lips, “What is different about the way I respond?”

“It’s nothing, Sam.”

“Am I going to humiliate myself when we do this?”

“I’m going to go out with Martha and order some food, once I know when we are doing this I will let you know. Sound good?”

“Don’t I deserve to know Alcide?”

“I don’t want to do this right now Sam. You’re making it out to be a bigger deal than it is.”

“Fine.” Sam straightened his clothes, his jaw set as he headed towards the office door and he almost made it there before Alcide grabbed his arm. 

He dragged him until he was against his body, and he tried very hard not to notice how well that smaller body pressed against his own. “You are so sensitive, I’d be surprised if Martha doesn’t come back here to check on you. You submit… bigger than wolves do.”

“You said most wolves are submissive.”

“They are, but submitting doesn’t make them get so affectionate. Or linger so long. Wolves submit just as long as they have to and then they stop.” He shrugged, “Maybe it is because you have so many different animals in you, like a combination. But listen, there is no reason to be embarrassed. Martha thinks you feel like pack too, it isn’t just me, and that should mean the wolves will too. Understand?”

“She said I’m lonely.”

“You are. I can feel it. She can. All the wolves probably will be able to. And maybe with what we are doing you will feel it less.”

Sam was close enough that his nose was just under Alcide’s chin and at the words he leaned up, licking at his jaw like when he was a puppy, two tongue strokes before he realized what he was doing and jerked backwards, hand coming to his mouth.

Alcide had grabbed on to him to keep him from moving too far away, and he touched his neck, eyes firmly on Sam. He tried to figure out what to say but was distracted by the fact that his tongue on his skin had been, uh, nice. What he finally managed was a shrug, “See? Bigger.”

Sam eased back more and Alcide let him. He tried to sniff at the air discreetly, Sam smelled embarrassed, annoyed, but not upset. None of the desperation from the day before. He clearly felt more confident too as he took another step back and pointed at the door. “We ain’t gonna talk about that, ever. And you’re gonna leave.”

“You got it.” He gave him a grin, “I will let you know more info when I have it. Okay?”

Sam nodded and Alcide didn’t drag it out as he turned and headed out of the office, giving Sam his space. He slid into the booth with Martha, and figured they probably wouldn’t see Sam again while they were still there. 

Martha eyed him and looked back down at the menu, “You smell happy.”

“Leave it.” He took a sip of his water and looked around to see if there was anyone listening. “What did you think?”

“I don’t know what the hell the two of you have done, but I think you’re right in what you want to do. And I think you might even be able to get him accepted as part of the pack, if that is what you are trying for. Hope he’s got something better to shift to though.”

“A collie. Believe me, it ain’t much better. Cute as shit, though.”

“I’m not surprised.” She looked down at the cup of coffee she had, “You know you will have to protect him, even with the best of intentions from the pack. He’s no wolf.”

“I know.” He set the menu down and sighed, “I know.”

Sam stayed clear of the front area for a solid hour, hoping they would be gone by time he was forced to come back out. He could smell Alcide but everything the man touched was overwhelmed by his scent. Sam had half a mind to go around and rub against everything in the bar just so it smelled like him again. 

Seeing Martha had been almost too much, logically he knew not to be afraid of her but that deep down subconscious, the memories of when the pack held him were impossible to ignore. And he was still cranky about her comment, it was out of context. He wasn’t a coward. He finally peaked out the office and the booth they had been in was empty and he let out the breath he was holding. 

He could get some work done now, at least to keep him from thinking too hard about what was happening. What was going to happen. He grabbed a few things and headed out, and was just thinking that Alcide’s scent was still  _ so _ strong even after he left, when he came around the corner and face to face with the man sitting at the bar. He stumbled to a stop, nearly dropping the papers. Alcide was laughing as he talked with Lafayette and the first thing that popped into his head spilled out, “You were supposed to be  _ gone _ .”

There was a flair up at the tone, it was no way for him to talk to his pack master, but he shoved it down. He just met Sam’s eyes, grinned at how flustered he was, “I’m sorry?”

Sam got control of himself, as he shook his head. “I’m sorry, I’m just surprised. Where is… where did she go?”

“I sent her back with my truck. Figured if you were gonna have to head out tonight I might as well wait and ride with you. Will be easier for you to get on to pack territory.” He sipped his beer, “Thought I could help ya stay calm.”

Sam stared at him, not sure what to say. Alcide took another sip of his beer, waiting until no one was close, “Do you want me to go somewhere else until you’re done? I could go over to Sookie’s.”

“No, you can do whatever you want.” Sam was clearly distressed though, and edged farther away, glancing around. 

He finished off his beer and dropped a 10 on the counter and stood up. Sam hunched his shoulders but Alcide didn’t crowd him. “I’m gonna go see Sookie, please try and relax. You don’t have to be afraid of me, and I’m not gonna do anything to you. Okay?”

Sam watched him carefully, sniffing the air, judging how sincere he was and finally nodded. “Okay.” He glanced down at his paperwork and back up. “You don't have to leave if you don’t want to.”

“I’ll be back about 5. Be ready to go.”

“What… what do I need?”

“Just yourself puppy dog.”

He didn’t look back at Sam as he left, he didn’t want to be tempted to touch him, or comfort him, especially when he wasn’t entirely sure what his influence would do to him. The man would never forgive him if he sent him kneeling in the middle of the dining room. There would be plenty of that tonight.


	4. Chapter 4

Sam was outside when Alcide got back, on the side of the building, apparently talking to himself. Alcide didn’t notice until he was almost to the door but he caught a whiff of the man and headed around the corner, quiet so Sam wouldn’t hear. 

Sam huffed out a breath, leaning against the building with his eyes closed. “This is your bar. You got the law on your side. You ain’t scared of vampires, or werepanthers, you ain’t gonna be scared of a werewolf.”

“Y’all had werepanthers here?”

The man must have leapt nearly a foot in the air, spinning to face Alcide. His mouth opened but no words came out, flooding the area with fight or flight panic. The man was so on edge. Was he always like this? Alcide took a step closer, tilting his head, “Werepanthers?”

Finally Sam kicked into action, stumbling a few steps towards Alcide, “I’m sorry-”

“I told you not to be afraid of me, Sam. I am assuming I’m the werewolf you are referring too, and that between lunch and now another wolf has not arrived to threaten you.” Even though he was joking he sniffed as he talked because if some wolf was here he’d track them down and tear them apart for being in his territory. Except… it wasn’t his. Felt like it was though. Hmm.

His attention turned back to Sam who was directly in front of him, flushed and embarrassed, and any further intention he had of teasing the man faded away. Instead he just tilted his head towards the lot, “You ready to go?”

“Yea. I already set everyone up for the night, made sure there was someone to open, wasn’t sure how late we’d be out. I was just…”

“Giving yourself a pep talk?” Okay, a little more teasing. At least now that he didn’t catch him off guard Sam’s response was to narrow his eyes.

“Quit creeping around my property.”

“My bad.” Sam was watching him carefully, watching how he reacted and he did his best to stay calm and non threatening. Though he did have to say something, “On the way there we’re gonna talk a bit about what is gonna happen, and I’m gonna say this again, but you just make sure you stay with me, okay?” He reached out to grab his shirt and tug him forward, hand on his cheek. “You are safe, and you will not be in any real danger. But I am gonna need ya to stay right with me, understand?”

“You want me to  _ heel _ .” The word was snarked, angry. And it was gonna be a long night if Sam was going to get an attitude about everything he said. 

So Alcide patted his cheek, a touch harder than nice. “Yes, Heel. Glad you understand.” And turned without another word, heading towards Sam’s truck.

Halfway to it he heard Sam following. At the truck he turned to look at him and refused to be swayed by how miserable Sam looked. He put his hand out when he got close, “Keys.”

There was no fight about it, Sam just pulled the keys out and handed them over and then headed for the passenger side. Aggravated Alcide grabbed his arm to stop him, pressing him against the truck. Sam averted his eyes, crossing his arms. Every inch of his body was tense, screaming that he was afraid. Alcide took a deep breath. “Sam.”

“I’m sorry, okay?” Blue eyes darted up to his and then away, “I’m scared and its a terrible fucking feeling and pisses me off.” Sam reached up to touch his own face, “You just slapped me like it was nothing, Alcide. Are you… will there be more of that?”

“I didn’t slap you, I patted your cheek.” Okay, it might have been a tad hard. “Come on, in the truck, let’s get going.”

Sam nodded and Alcide moved so the man could get into the truck. He shouldn’t have egged the man on. He glanced at the bar for a few moments before he got in the truck and turned it on. He turned out on the main road and got settled into driving before he started talking. 

“You might have to shift tonight, please don’t use the puppy. Someone may eat you.”

Sam moving, fidgeting, was loud in the cab of the truck. “I don’t always mean to. The collie? I have a pitbull. Don’t got a wolf.”

“Collie is fine. There will be 5 or 6 wolves there, Martha is one of them. One of them will be Rikki, she is my second and I’ll be honest with ya Sam, she isn’t thrilled about this, so you can expect her to start shit. But she won’t hurt you, you’re safe with me.”

“I remember her.” Out of the corner of his eye he could see Sam touching his throat, “She put the leather band around my throat when they tied me up. She was the first to question me about Marcus. Maybe this is a bad idea Alcide.”

“You’ll meet the wolves that are there, then I’ll have you submit, and then maybe we’ll all shift and go for a run depending on how it goes. That straightforward.”

“You just gonna pretend I didn’t say something?” Alcide shrugged and Sam huffed out in annoyance. “Fine. What am I supposed to do when I’m there?”

“Just be yourself Sam. I think they will like you.”

“What am I supposed to do if a wolf wants to… fight me? If I say the wrong thing will I be in trouble? Am I supposed to just  _ submit _ to everyone?”

“We have some ceremony Sam, but we are simple folks. A faux pas isn’t going to start a war. If there is something specific I ask you to do don’t talk back to me. I’m alpha, and the only thing you could do tonight that would cause trouble is if you start shit with me.”

“Okay.”

“If a wolf challenges you, well… submit if you think you can’t take them, fight them if you think you can. If you submit you won’t be hurt, wolves are pretty particular about that. If you don’t submit, you won’t be killed but you do run the risk of getting your ass whupped. And I won’t be able to help you with that.”

“Could I take any of the wolves?” Alcide’s chuckle was his answer Sam threw himself back against the seat, a childish display of temper. “You’re an asshole. I can fight.”

“Anyways, the only wolf that might challenge is Rikki.”

Sam’s muttering stopped, abruptly quiet, the momentary indignation gone. “When I submit she won’t hurt me though, right? That is what you said?”

“That’s what I said.”

“When you say challenge do you mean like what you did to me? That Martha did?”

“No, that is only something an Alpha can do. Or a former alpha, like Martha. It isn’t something that is really used to fight, just to ‘check’ your pack. That’s why that wouldn’t have worked on you if you weren’t pack.”

“So by challenge you just mean start a fight.”

“Yea.”

“What if-”

“You are overthinking this Sam. I know you’re nervous, but you’re working yourself up. Just follow your instincts, you have good ones. I wouldn’t bring you there otherwise.”

“Yea okay.” Sam settled into the seat. “I trust you.” 

That made Alcide smile and without looking he reached out to drop one hand on Sam’s knee, giving it a squeeze. It seemed to make Sam relax so he left his hand there, and he really hoped this all went as smooth as he promised Sam it would.

Sam had been slouching in the seat, obviously lost in his own head when he suddenly sat up, sniffing, twisting around to look in the woods. From the road you couldn’t see anything, but the scent of wolf was suddenly strong. “Your wolves?”

“Yup. Almost home.”

Sam was suddenly leaning out the window, hands on the sill, still sniffing. “Stop, Alcide, stop.”

He glanced at him, reaching out to grab the back of his shirt, a little worried he was going to fall out the window. “What? Why?”

“It smells good.” He pulled against Alcide’s hold and it seemed to be the first time he realized he was holding him. He let the man pull him back in the seat but he whined. “What is that? It smells warm.” He whined again and leaned towards the window.

“Pack.” Alcide nodded his head, smile tugging at his mouth. “You smell your pack.”

Sam eased back and looked at him, “I’ve been here before, it did not smell like this.”

“Because you weren’t pack then, Sam. Martha said your bar smelled like pack, and it’s because you were in there. Whatever has happened with me and you, it isn’t a fluke.” Sam still watched him, “It smells hostile, threatening here to shifters, wolves, anything that can pick up a scent that aren’t part of our pack. But to us? It smells like safety and home. So, what do you smell?”

Sam didn't answer him, but he could feel those big blue eyes on him. A quick glance showed the man’s face open, desperate, before Sam turned to look back out the window, resting his head on his arm.


	5. Chapter 5

They took a right onto a small road, another mile or so down they took a turn onto a gravel drive and finally the house and barn loomed in the distance. Their den, as it were. Sam had been fairly relaxed but now his eyes were on the barn, and Alcide noticed the man shifting closer to him in the truck. 

“We don’t have to go in there or anything, okay?”

Sam nodded like he heard him, but was still staring at the barn with wide eyes. It occured to Alcide that it was about more than just shifters, or wolves, or anything like that. Abruptly he realized the man probably had some kind of ptsd about being tied up and tortured. Like any sane person would. He had never even given it any thought.

He pulled into a spot in front of the house and turned the truck off, “You ready, Sam?”

“Yea.” His eyes finally moved away from the barn but he reached up to touch his neck again. Alcide almost said something but it would have to be an issue they could work on in the future. There was already enough going on tonight. 

“Okay. Stay put till I come and get ya.”

“Sure.” 

Alcide slid out of the truck and headed into the house, making sure they were ready before he brought Sam in. 

Sam watched him go in, breath hitching with nerves, and he wished that Alcide hadn’t left him alone. He sniffed the air, there was that warm smell that he wanted to press against, roll in, but it was at odds with his own fear and anxiety. 

“Hello, dog, remember me?”

Sam didn’t have time to react when Rikki grabbed him by his shirt, dragging him out of the window of the truck. He couldn’t get his feet under him as she dragged him towards the barn. Inside the door she shoved him forward, leaving him to sprawl face down on the ground. She was growling as she approached. “Came back for round two, huh?”

The smell of the barn hit Sam, and he could taste his fear at the back of his throat, the memory was so strong. He whimpered, trying to catch his breath but he couldn’t. Leaving him panting, gasping for air. Rikki was above him, eyes flashing and teeth bared.

Though he was panicked he rolled on to his back at her feet, tilting his head back, showing his belly and his throat and really hoped that Alcide wasn’t wrong. That he wouldn’t have his throat ripped out for baring it.

He was trying to look up at her, but his vision was blurry and he wasn’t sure when he started crying. She crouched down near him, and he squeezed his eyes closed but didn’t move, didn’t try to protect himself. “Hey, dog-”

“Christ Rikki, what the fuck did I tell you?”

Hands were on Sam, and he cried out, but instantly recognized Alcide’s scent and once he was pulled up to kneeling he pressed against him, sobbing against his shirt. Alcide gave Rikki a dirty look as he stood, picking up Sam easily and heading out of the barn. Once they were by the truck, Alcide hoped the familiar scent of something that belonged to the man would calm him, he settled him down on the ground. 

Sam was in the middle of a panic attack and Alcide cupped his face, trying to keep his voice calm. “Hey, Sam. I’m right here. I need you to breathe with me.” Sam’s eyes were wild though, and Alcide gently stroked his cheek, using his alpha pull to calm him. “Sam, look at me.” His eyes met his and he nodded, “Okay, breathe with me. In….out.”

It took a handful of breaths before Sam’s heart wasn’t racing, until there wasn't the pounding of blood in his ears drowning everything else out. He only had eyes for Alcide as he whimpered out, “Please don’t put me back in the barn. I’ll leave right now if I did something wrong, I'm sorry, please.”

“I got you Sam. You are safe with me.” Sam’s eyes finally glanced past him to Rikki but he grabbed his jaw and brought it back to him. “Hey, what did I tell you in the truck?”

Sam licked his lips, Alcide’s solid presence helping him see through the fog of panic. “That I’m safe with you.”

“Right, and you are. Rikki, come here.”

Rikki moved closer and Sam tensed again, squealing, “I submitted.”

Alcide gave her a warning look but she only crouched down near them, her face mostly closed off but what did filter through was confusion. Curiosity. “You sure did, dog.” Her attention turned to Alcide, “What’s wrong with him, I barely touched him.”

“I don’t know, maybe dragging him back to the place you tied him up and tortured him had something to do with it.”

Rikki looked like she may not have thought about that and leaned in, “Whoops. Can I smell him? Martha said he smells like pack.”

Alcide nodded and spoke to Sam, “You’re okay, she challenged and you submitted. She won’t hurt you, remember?”

“He submitted like a wolf.”

“I know.” Alcide put one hand out to stop her before she moved forward and leaned in, lowering his voice. Not that it would actually keep Sam from hearing. “Like a terrified submissive wolf, Rikki. Act like it.”

“Ah, right.” She moved until she was kneeling between his legs, his back to the truck so he had nowhere to go. He whined when she leaned in but when she touched his head with one hand to tilt it back he did, letting her press her nose against his throat. As soon as she did the hand holding him softened, petting his hair and she shushed his whimpers. She pulled back and her body language was more at ease, she clearly could smell pack too. “I didn’t mean to scare you like that, with the barn. Just normal scare you, with the teeth and claws and stuff. Course, you rolled over before I even got a good threat in.”

Alcide could only shake his head, Rikki never failed to surprise him with how blunt she could be. But she clearly wasn’t hostile anymore as she grabbed onto Sam’s shirt and pulled him to his feet when she stood. “Come on dog, up ya go.” He tried to move to Alcide but she kept the hold on him and pushed him back against the truck. “Nope, second in command here, still talking to you. Stay put.” She looked him up and down, “Just wanted to make sure you didn’t piss yourself again.”

A bitter jolt of anger went through Sam, his body going tense, and his eyes jerked up from the ground to meet hers. She met them, raising an eyebrow at him. She leaned in a bit, “What’s wrong Dog, got something to say to me?”

Sam’s nose flared, sniffing, and he wanted to do something. Anything. She was clearly taunting him, trying to get him to attack her. But his nose was filled with the smell of pack and Rikki smelled strong and familiar. So slowly he slid down to his knees in front of her, eyes down. Her mouth quirked as she looked down at him, and she glanced over to Alcide, “He’s kind of cute.”

Alcide shook his head as he shoved her out of the way, he felt bad but it was best to let her just get it out of her system. “Come on, Sam.” The man watched him for a moment making sure it was okay and climbed to his feet. He caught Alcide’s eyes and knew he couldn’t hide what he was feeling, this was already going worse than he thought it would. He had been so hopeful but now he was just resigned, this was just another thing in his life to beat him down. For the first time he saw something like anger on Alcide’s face but it was clearly aimed at Rikki.

“What the fuck are you all doing still outside?”

They all turned towards the house, at Martha in the doorway. It was actually what he needed. He grabbed Sam’s shirt and gave him a little tug to get him moving, “Can you go with Martha, Sam? And we will be right in?”

Sam took a step that way, and his stomach lurched in fear, freezing him from moving anymore. “Sam?”

“Please don’t leave me.” He turned fully towards Alcide and he hated himself. He could feel the self loathing in him like a poison, because he couldn’t be stronger. “Please.”

“Ah, fuck Rikki, this shit is why I talked to you about this.” Alcide rubbed a hand over his face and then grabbed Sam’s arm, but despite that he was angry, he kept it gentle. He walked them over to the door where Martha was and then held his face, “Go with Martha. You’re safe.” Sam hesitated and Alcide put just a little edge on it, “That’s an order, go on.”

Sam’s eyes darted between them. Martha smiled at him and motioned inside and he whimpered, but did as he was told, shoulders hunched, nervously tugging at his shirt. Martha let the door close after him and then it was just him and Rikki.

She didn’t even pretend like she didn’t know what was wrong. “You said he was submissive Alcide, not that he was a whimpering ball of nerves.” She glanced at the house and back to him, “He’s broken, what do you think we can do for him.”

A growl filled the air between them and Rikki seemed to just realize how much she was pissing him off and averted her eyes. “Did you smell pack on him?”

“I did.” She shrugged and looked at him, not to be intimidated. “I figured it was just from rubbing up on you though till I got closer.”

“Then you know what we can do for him.”

“He’s not a wolf, Alcide.”

“No, but he’s something, and my wolf is telling me he is ours. What does your wolf say?”

“Yeah, that he’s one of ours, broken and all.” She snorted, “He’s too soft, smells good when he’s submissive though, I remember that.” Alcide tilted his head and was going to let that go but it was too close to what he had said and there was something to that. He logged it away in head later to ask Martha about. 

“Are you going to keep pushing him? He isn’t gonna fight back, Rikki.”

“No, I got what I needed. Let’s get this done so we can run.”

They headed in the house and could already smell the distress from the doorway. He reached the living room and there was Martha and two ofther wolves, Sam standing against the wall. Rikki pushed past and headed straight for him, leaning on the wall next to Sam, pressing in close to him. Sam’s body tensed up but Rikki reached out to pat his leg, actually gentle, “You’re okay.”

“Did you meet Julie and Kyle?” Sam nodded, and Alcide was ready to be done with all this. “Alright, let’s get outside and do this.” 

Sam winced at the tone, Alcide wasn’t even trying to hide that he was aggravated and this was all his fault. He felt that shiver in him, the power when he shifted, and thought he might not be able to help it, but was pulled away from it as Rikki grabbed his wrist to pull him along.

He was making a really great fucking impression. It wasn’t like the conversation Rikki and Alcide had outside was private, not with the way they could all hear. Outside Alcide was already taking off his shirt, getting ready to shift. 

Sam hesitated, something like performance anxiety, as Rikki stared at him. He glanced at her as he pulled off his shirt but stopped after that. It wasn’t about being naked, he just wished he had a bigger canine to shift into. She was still watching and he kicked at the ground, “What?”

“I wanna see what you shift to.”

“Rikki, leave him be and shift already.” 

She shrugged and gave Sam a wink and then there was a large wolf in her place. Who sat down and watched him.

He rolled his shoulders and realized it was just him and Alcide left still human. He was just making a big deal out of it. With a huff he shifted, and instantly the tension eased as he switched to dog. It was always simpler. 

Around the wolves it was drastically clear how much smaller he was, but he gave a low tail wag, too excited about getting to run with others to be concerned about it. Alcide shifted and moved to him, snuffling along him like he was making sure he was okay and then took off in the woods. The wolves howled, Sam adding his own yip, and followed their alpha.


	6. Chapter 6

The path was familiar and Alcide took it at a full run, burning off some of his frustration. He just wanted to protect Sam, and so far the other man just felt worse. It made him feel like a failure as an alpha, and it may have made him run harder than usual. It wasn’t until he reached their clearing and was the only one there, that he realized it. He shifted, looking out in the woods impatiently. He really wanted to lay into Rikki, but she hadn’t done anything that she wouldn’t with other wolves. She may have bullied Sam, but he knew he was being over protective. 

Three wolves entered the clearing and Alcide frown, it was the two younger wolves and Martha, so where the fuck was Rikki. Something in his stomach twisted, worried that she had hurt Sam, but he knew that was just his nerves. She might be a pain in the ass but she followed orders. She took care of her pack. 

The others shifted as well and moved to him, and Martha had a smile for him. “They’re coming, Sam can’t run as fast. Rikki stayed with him to make sure he was safe.” The disbelief must have shown on his face because Martha shrugged, “Think she felt bad.”

It was a few minutes until he heard them, and another minute before Rikki came out of the trees, Sam at her heels. Panting, tail wagging. Clearly happy and Rikki looked it too. For a moment he felt something akin to … jealousy and he swallowed that down hard. 

Sam went straight for him, shifting once he got there, kneeling naked on the ground in front of him. And the jealousy faded away at how relaxed Sam looked. He looked over his head at Rikki once she shifted. “Thank you.” She gave a nod and he turned his attention back to Sam. “You doing okay?”

“You guys are fast.”

“Sorry about that.” He reached out to touch his jaw, unprepared for Sam to rub his face against his hand, pushing into it. “Alright, let’s get this done.” He knew he sounded angry, short, but really Sam kneeling like that, inches from his dick, smelling sweet and submissive, was having an effect on him. 

Sam’s eyes tilted to the ground, shoulders hunching in a little, losing some of that joy from the run. He shook it off, it wouldn’t matter in a moment. “I am Alcide, alpha of the shreveport wolves. Do you understand this?” He had to alter the normal pack induction a little, because they weren’t making Sam pack, they were doing… something else. He still wasn’t sure.

“Yes.” Sam’s pupils were dilated, voice breathy. He leaned in closer to Alcide, nearly touching. He was feeling the alpha pull, here in their meeting space it was strong without Alcide doing much.

“Do you submit?”

“Yes.” Without being told Sam slid down to the ground, on his back, showing belly and throat, a needy whine in his throat. 

Alcide watched him, let him stay there submitting for long seconds before he crouched down. He grabbed the man’s throat, tight enough to cut off his air, but under his hand Sam stayed put and didn’t fight it. Just stared up at him with the most trusting fucking eyes he’d ever seen. He let go at the same time he pushed out his full alpha force at him, “I accept.” The words were a growl and the alpha force hit Sam, making him keen and rock to his knees.

Alcide expected the man to rub against him, trying to crawl up him like before, to roll around on the ground, he was prepared for anything the man might do.

What he was not prepared for was the whine to turn a pained cry, for Sam to pitch forward, and for when it to stop there to be a wolf sitting at his feet. 

There was silence around them as Alcide stared down at Sam, he was a wolf, on the small side for sure, but definitely a wolf. He was panting, ears pinned down, tail tucked and it was Rikki that spoke up first. 

“He doesn’t smell like a shift, Alcide. He smells like a wolf.”

“He doesn’t have a wolf shift.” The wolf was cowering, whimpering, but he was frozen. What the fuck had happened. He looked up, “Martha?”

She came forward to the Wolf, perplexed as she reached him. She sniffed the air, and reached out to touch him and finally looked to Alcide. “I think he’s a wolf, Alcide.”

“That isn’t possible.” He looked down at Sam, “Shift back.”

The wolf whined more, pawing at the ground frantically. His entire body was shaking, eyes wide, fear flooding his system. 

“I don’t think he can Alcide.”

The wolf's head snapped to her and then back to Alcide, whimpering as he butted his head against his legs. “Okay.” He reached out to grab Sam’s snout, looking him over. The contact felt like touching a wolf, and he did like he had in the office, forcing Sam out of the shift. 

It worked, leaving a cowering Sam at his feet. The man was sucking in big gasps of air, crying, and Alcide reached down to place a hand on his head to comfort him. Alcide waited until the man had calmed down some, “What happened Sam?”

“I don’t know.” HIs voice was wobbly. “I didn’t do that. It just happened.” Panic made his voice break, “I couldn’t come back.” He was crying again, he couldn’t help it.

Sam jerked when arms were wrapped around him but the two wolves he had just met were on the ground with him, pressing him in tight between them. Rikki not far away, standing close behind him so they were pressed against her. He realized they were comforting him, supporting him, and it made his heart break. He was terrified by what happened, but he wanted this so bad. 

“I think he might have wolf somewhere in his family, Alcide. Like a recessive trait or something, we must have triggered it. Maybe that is why all this was happening.”

“Shifters can’t be werewolves.”

Martha shrugged and waved her hand at Sam, “I think maybe they can.”

Alcide looked down at them and couldn’t deny the rush of pure joy he had at the thought. He wanted Sam to be part of the pack,  _ really _ part of the pack, and it looked like he may get that. There was still something off, something not right, but no one would be able to say that the man wasn’t a wolf, his scent was clear. He was submissive, he wouldn’t challenge anyone, there was no reason he wouldn’t be accepted into the pack.

Rikki reached down to tug on Sam’s hair until he looked up at her, “I’m still calling you dog.”

That actually was a good point. “Sam?” The wolves gave him a bit of space so he could move in front of Alcide, sitting back on his heels. “Can you go wolf again?”

Sam looked scared but he tried, concentrating on it but nothing happened. He closed his eyes so he could focus more, but still nothing happened and he finally looked back up Alcide. The man nodded, “I’m going to try to shift you into wolf, okay?”

It was different than with his wolves, there were so many feelings of different animals, but Alcide just pressed for the wolf. He found it. It was hidden, and he gently  _ pulled _ at it until it came out into the light and then Sam was back to the wolf, less scared this time. He ruffled his fur, and nodded. “I could feel the difference between his shifts and this. This is a werewolf. It was hiding.”

As the wolf Sam pressed against him, rolling over at his feet, wagging his tail as he submitted. 

“Kinda small, ain’t he?” The wolf wiggled to look at Rikki, as diapproving as a wolf could look and she laughed. “What, you are.”

“Alright Sam, I want you to try to shift back on your own, okay?” The wolf whined but Alcide shook his head, “Nope, I want you to do it. Come on.”

It took long moments but finally Sam was human again, sitting at his feet, clearly proud of himself. Also, clearly exhausted. Turning into a wolf, the back and forth must have wiped him out and he could see it all over his face. 

“Well, this got way more interesting.” He motioned at Rikki, “If you wanna take a run with the others you can. I think he is probably too exhausted to do much. I’m gonna bring him back to the house.”

“I wanna run too.”

Rikki dropped a hand to his head, briefly scratching through his hair, “Plenty of time in the future to run, Dog. You look like you’re about to topple over. Listen to your alpha.”

She didn’t wait for an answer just motioned at the others and shifted, taking off at a fast trot. The younger wolves followed right away, and Martha came over to give Sam a pat like Rikki had before she shifted and took off too, leaving just Alcide and Sam.

He watched the way they had gone and scrambled to his feet, watching them until they were gone before looking back to Alcide. Something changed with it just being the two of them, and Sam found himself blushing as he looked away, caught off guard when Alcide grabbed him and jerked him forward so they were pressed together and hugged him, leaning down his head to press against Sam’s. They stayed that way for awhile before Alcide pulled back, “How are you holding up?”

“I’m a werewolf?”

“Maybe. Looks like it, kind of. It means joining the pack fully is an option now.” Without giving it too much thought he used his alpha and it made Sam gasp and press in against him, and it was impossible to miss that the man was hard, his cock pressed up against Alcide’s leg. 

Sam smelled aroused, excited, and Alcide thought about backing away, but he couldn’t help leaning into Sam again though, he smelled so fucking good. So instead he rocked his leg against him, just a little, small enough that it could have been an accident.

Sam moaned, rutting against Alcide’s leg for a moment before he got control of himself and where Alcide’s cock was pressed against the man’s stomach he twitched, giving away that Sam wasn’t the only one interested. Alcide glanced around the woods, he still felt like he was taking advantage of the other man. He’d never seen Sam so much as look at a man, and he couldn’t shake that whatever was happening was causing the response. 

Just as he was going to pull away, suggest they head back, Sam leaned his head against his chest and spoke, voice husky but embarrassed. “I can only stand in the woods humping your leg for so long before I start to feel pathetic, Alcide.”

Alcide touched under the man’s jaw so he looked up, “I’ve never seen you interested in men before, and believe me Sookie would have mentioned it. I think you’re just having a reaction to meeting an alpha.”

A weak chuckle made it out from Sam, “Didn’t think I’d have to discuss my sexuality tonight.”

“We should head back to the den.”

“You smell good.” Sam rolled his hips against Alcide and there had been something snarky on the tip of Sam’s tongue but it felt so good that he made a small sound instead, hips hitching without his permission, and when he settled he smelled more embarrassed. “Right, I’m not dumb, I know when I’m getting turned down.”

Sam started to pull away and Alcide closed his eyes for a moment and with a growl wrapped an arm around his waist and yanked him back. Sam shivered at the show of force, tilting his head, submitting. Because yea, that dominance may be part of it but not the way that Alcide was worried about it. 

The man was clearly still hesitant, worried that he might be taking advantage and Sam met his eyes, before he slid down to his knees in front of him. There was a flash of wolf in Alcide’s eyes, and one of his hands landed on Sam’s shoulder, grasping it hard. 

Sam leaned in, rubbing his cheek along Alcide’s thigh, huffing out of a breath on the man’s cock which was clearly interested. He nuzzled near the base, whimper caught in his throat and looked up to meet his eyes. Alcide raised an eyebrow at him and Sam stuttered out, “I think… I need your permission.” He didn’t know if it was because he was an alpha or just because Sam wasn’t the most secure person in the world, but he needed that absolute reassurance. 

Fingers wrapped in his hair and he expected it to be gentle but the fingers tugged hard. “Suck.” The word was barely more than a growl and a shiver went through Sam’s body, his cock twitching. 

Sam’s sexuality was what he would call flexible, he didn’t have a lot of experience but it wasn’t the first time he’d given a blowjob. He’d never been so excited about giving one that his own cock was rock hard before though.

He licked across the tip, wrapping his tongue around him, moving over him without much preamble. He’d thought about this since he’d knelt in front of Alcide in his office the day before. Well, if he was honest with himself he’d thought about it a time or two before that too.

His own cock was demanding attention, pressed up against his belly and dripping pre cum already, and he reached down to touch himself, but a quick tug of his hair was all he needed as an order not too. He moaned around the cock, and who knew he had such a thing for being dominated. He spread his legs a little more, shuffling forward what he could and Alcide moved until he had one leg settled between Sam’s.

It took all his self control not to rut against the man, and wasn’t that just humiliating. He didn’t know how long the man would last, but precum was thick on his tongue, and he sucked harder. He was already teetering on the edge and he hadn’t even been touched. He tried to move his hips back, he would never live down if he came against the man’s leg, humping him like a dog. 

The hand in his hair directed him, picking up speed, and gave a warning tug before he was coming. It was too good to hold off longer, the combination of Sam’s mouth and his sweet scent, the easy submission hit the spot perfectly. Sam swallowed around his cock, sucking gently for a few moments before he pulled back. Alcide ran a thumb over the man’s swollen lips, swiping a drop of cum that escaped. Sam sucked it off his thumb, eyes on Alcide the entire time, and when he pulled his thumb out of his mouth he whimpered, “Please.”

No need to ask what he was begging about, the hard cock sliding against his leg was pretty obvious. He would bet anything he could make the man cum like this, and a small mean part of him wanted to, but he wasn’t trying to humiliate him.

So instead he dragged him to his feet, spinning him so his back was to Alcide, letting one hand slowly trail down his chest and across his stomach, fingers teasingly close making Sam whimper and squirm against him. Only for a moment though, and then he wrapped a hand around his dick, stroking with long firm strokes. 

It didn’t take much, only a few before Sam was cumming, whining and bucking into Alcide’s hand, collapsing against him after. Alcide’s arm wrapped around him to hold him up and he nuzzled the man’s neck as he came down, panting and shivering. It made Alcide grin, and he grazed a hand over the man’s oversensitive cock, just to pull that whine from him again. He nipped at the side of the man’s neck and chuckled. “Well, with the way you suck cock I’m pretty confident you’ve been with men before.”

The shifting, the adrenaline from his breakdown at the barn, the orgasm and Sam felt like he hit a wall. He turned in the man’s arms, huddling against him as he made a soft mmm, and it was suddenly a struggle to keep his eyes open. “Think you can shift and make the run back?”

Sam nodded but he was slow to move, but then he was the collie, stretching big. Alcide shifted as well and they started the trek back. They had to move slow, Sam felt clumsy and he was normally so nimble in his dog form. Finally they made it back to the house and Alcide shifted, waiting for Sam to do the same. 

Sam shifted and stood for a few seconds, grinning like an idiot, and then toppled forward as he passed out. Alcide caught him before he hit the ground, and it was a few tense moments as he made sure the man was breathing okay, that his heart beat was okay. He picked him up and headed into the house, settling the man on the couch and covering him with a blanket. Not what he had expected out of the night, but it was a hell of a thing.


	7. Chapter 7

He was sitting in a chair, watching Sam sleep when the door to the house opened. He pushed to his feet as Martha came in, a fond look sent towards Sam. “How is he doing?”

“Literally passed out when we got back, he’s been sleeping since. Think he is out for the count.” He glanced past her, “The others head home?”

“Rikki is sending them off right now, she was looking for you.”

He nodded, “Will ya keep an eye on him?”

She chuckled, “So protective, huh? Go on, your little shifter is safe.”

“My little wolf.” He fixed the blanket, pushing Sam’s hair out of his face. “ _ Our  _ little wolf.” He left him and headed out to the front and found Rikki leaning against Sam’s truck, smoking a cigarette. He motioned at her, “Give me one of those.”

She handed him one and he lit it, leaning against the truck next to her. He looked back at it, “Why are you by his truck anyways?”

“Scenting him. Nosing around.” She gave him a sideways look and a smirk, “Smells like you got to know him better too.”

“Don’t start.”

“Did he whimper a lot, I bet he did.” She laughed at Alcide’s grumble and she shrugged, “I don’t blame you, he smells fucking good, especially when he’s submissive. Ain’t fear, it’s once he gives in. Back when we had him in the barn you could smell him through the whole place. JD wanted to fuck him bad.”

She had started to turn away but Alcide grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back, “JD did  _ what _ .”

She shrugged off his grip, “Didn’t  _ do  _ nothing. Just wanted to. Martha wouldn’t let him. I wouldn’t have let him.”

“Right, just torture him to within an inch of his life.”

“Exactly.” She refused to back down and finally Alcide leaned back. 

“But JD didn’t, right?”

“Nope. JD threatened him a few times, touched him a little, but that’s it.” She glanced at him, “Quit grumbling, you already killed him. Can’t kill him again.”

“So what are your thoughts on this?”

“On you fucking him?” She pretended to be considering it, “I’d have to see for myself before I can really form an opinion.”

“On him being a wolf, you bitch. And I didn’t fuck him. We just…” Abruptly he stopped, “I’m not explaining myself to you.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not sniffing around your bone.” Sometimes he was certain that Rikki would be about to die and would still mouth off. It’s one of the things he loved about her. “I think he’s a wolf. We can induct him at the full moon.”

“Just like that?”

“You think I couldn’’t smell how stupid happy you were when he went wolf? You want him to be a part of this pack so bad I can taste it. Not my place to ask why. He’s a wolf. If he wants to be pack let him.” She pushed off the truck, “I like him too, he’s cute, like one of those little ankle biters.”

“Take it easy on him, okay?”

Her smile slid to something more sincere, “I felt the loneliness too, Alcide. How much he’s hurting. We’ll fix him up. He’s never had a pack?”

“He’s never even had a family, Rikki.” She winced at that, there wasn’t much that sounded worse to a wolf. They weren’t meant to be alone.

“Now he does.” She shook off the seriousness and made a kissy face at him, “I’m heading out, give him a big ole kiss from me, will ya?”

“Will do, Rikki. Thanks.”

She only acknowledged him with a wave of her hand and then she was gone. One of these days he was going to have to get all the details of what happened to Sam, maybe from Martha. Or hell, maybe someday Sam would want to talk about it. That level of panic attack doesn’t happen if you just got slapped around a little.

Inside the house Martha was at the table, having a cup of coffee. “You want to spend the night here tonight?”

“No, I’ll bring him home. I’ll give you a call tomorrow so we can talk.” He hesitated but he had to ask, had to make sure. “Rikki said when you guys had him before that JD threatened to rape him. I never heard anything about that, Martha.”

“It never got that far. I wouldn’t have let him touch him like that. I’m okay with killing, Alcide, but that wasn’t gonna happen under my roof.”

There was nothing else to say so he picked up Sam, smiling down at the man when in his sleep he cuddled closer to him, and gave Martha a nod before he left. It took some doing to get Sam in the car, but he buckled him in and shoved a coat under his head so the man was comfortably leaned against the door.

Halfway home Sam roused, whimpering, maybe a bark or two in his sleep before he settled again. He didn’t live far away but they were gonna be home late and Alcide shot a text to his foreman to let him know he wouldn’t be in first thing. 

“Alcide? Where are we?” The sleepy voice pulled him from his planning and without looking he patted Sam’s leg.

“My truck, you passed out. We’re almost home.”

“My house?” Alcide shook his head and Sam’s voice was shy, “Your house?”

“If you don’t mind. Be a long drive back to your house. Figured since you had someone to open anyways.”

“Yea, sure.” 

He expected the man to fall back asleep but Sam was pushing himself to an upright position, rubbing his eyes as he looked around. There was a glance at Alcide from under that fringe but Sam averted his eyes quickly. 

“You okay?”

“I don’t know.”

“Why don’t you come over here?” He held his arm up in invitation and just caught the blush on Sam’s face before he turned his face away.

“I’m okay.”

He didn’t want to force him, but could see how unsure the man was. How nervous. “What’s on your mind Sammy?” Sam was shaking his head, avoiding looking at him. “Alright, I’m here if you need to talk.” He wasn’t sure if he should push it, and tried to compromise. “I’m your alpha Sammy, you ain’t gotta be nervous.”

“Don’t call me Sammy.”

“Why?”

He glanced at him, uncertainty on his face when Alcide didn’t just comply. “I don’t like it.”

Alcide shrugged, taking a slightly different approach. “I do.” Sam’s shoulders hunched and he snapped his head to look out the window. “Sam, I’m just pulling your leg. Talk to me.”

Sam wrapped his arms around himself, “I barely know what it means to be a shifter, I don’t know what i’m supposed to do if I’m a werewolf.” He glanced sideways and there was sharp intelligence in his eyes and Alcide had to remember that Sam wasn’t dumb. “Does this mean I join the pack?”

Alcide shrugged without looking away from the road, “You don’t have to Sam. If you want to, you can ask to join.” There was only some movement next to him and he shoved down the urge to sigh. It would only upset the man. “You’d be accepted, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“Do you know what happened in the barn?”

The question was abrupt and loud in the quiet of the truck. Sam’s face was twisted up, angry and frustrated. “Sam, that isn’t what the pack normally does, they-”

“Do you know what happened?”

“Not the specifics.” He took a deep breath, trying to decide if he should let Sam talk or should help him out. Sam wasn’t talking though, just staring at Alcide with a helpless look on his face. “I know they tortured you. I saw the injuries after. And I know that JD threatened to rape you. Is that the part you wanna talk about Sam?”

It wasn’t a conversation they should have in the truck like this while driving, while he couldn’t comfort Sam or look at his face. He just realized it a moment too late. There was a muffled whimper, and then a sob, and Alcide cursed that there was nothing he could do. 

They were nearly home. He tried to reach out to touch him but Sam shoved himself further against the door, curling up in a ball against it. “Okay Sam, we’ll be home soon.”

It had to only be another five, ten minutes until they were at his house but listening to Sam crying and being helpless to do anything about it made him feel like a terrible Alpha. Not just about the crying, he was starting to regret touching the man, what they had done. Sam obviously wasn’t okay. 

Alcide had never been so relieved to get home. He slammed the truck into park and was out and around Sam’s side before the man was even out the door. He grabbed Sam’s face, holding him still and forcing him to meet his eyes. Sam resisted, trying to pull away, but Alcide pushed them back against the truck and held him there. Once Sam realized he couldn’t move, couldn’t get away, he stilled. “That will never happen, Sammy. That isn’t what our pack does. Martha and Rikki never would have let something like that happen.”

Sam stared at him, eyes still watery, but he was searching Alcide’s face. Alcide dropped his hand, easing back. “Let’s go inside Sam, please.”

“Okay.”

Tentatively he put an arm around Sam’s shoulders, relieved when the man let him. He wanted to calm him but was worried about using any alpha right now, wasn’t sure how he would react. He dropped his arm to unlock the door and felt Sam lean closer to him. He ushered Sam in and kicked off his boots, watching Sam do the same. 

“You want a drink?” Sam shook his head. “Alright, come on.” He led the man into hte living room and sat down, waiting for the man to sit as well. Sam looked like shit. “Sam…”

He scrubbed at his face, “He didn’t… but he touched me. And said, said that I smelled good when I was submissive. You said that too. What is wrong with me?”

“Nothing.” 

“Will more wolves think that Alcide?”

He debated for a moment, but had to be honest with the man. “Rikki said the same thing Sam, that you smelled good when you submitted.”

“Why?”

“I’m not sure. Just like I’m not sure how you’re a wolf when your parents weren’t wolves, how you’re both shifter and wolf or why it never showed up.”

Sam scrubbed his hands over his face, “Well what the fuck.”

Alcide watched him, Sam’s head buried in his hands, and he couldn’t stop himself from asking. “How did he touch you?”

“He’s dead.”

That wasn’t an answer but Sam’s body language said that was the only one he would get. Alcide shoved to his feet suddenly, he needed to distance himself from Sam before he hurt the man. He’d find someone else in the pack to explain everything, to help him out. “I’ll show you the guest room.”

“I’m sorry. I’ll tell you.” Sam scrambled to his feet, grabbing Alcide’s arm. His face was red, embarrassed. 

“I don’t need you to tell me Sam.”

“You’re mad. I wasn’t trying to make you angry. It’s just so much, Alcide.”

“I’m not mad at you Sam.”

“You are angry.” Sam licked his lips and he glanced up at Alcide. “I can feel it.”

“I’m angry Sam, but not at you.”

“Did you want me because of the way I smell? Is that why?”

“No.” He grabbed Sam’s shirt and slowly pulled him until they were touching, “I want you because you’re attractive and sweet. You do smell good but I’m not fucking someone just because I like the way they smell.” 

The tension eased out of Sam as he leaned into Alcide, letting the man hold him close. He had mentioned a guest room but Sam nuzzled against his throat, sighing, “Can I sleep with you?” It had been a long day, and the thought of sleeping surrounded by Alcide - by his alpha, was more than appealing. 

“Sam-”

“I don’t want to sleep alone, please.”

Alcide nodded as he ran a hand through Sam’s hair, petting him. He couldn’t resist that, not when he was asked so sweetly. “Okay, come on. It’s been a long day.”

He thought it might be awkward, or that Sam would be reluctant but once they were in his bedroom Sam stripped down. No hint of nervousness or embarrassment, and Alcide couldn’t help his mouth quirk. He was a very pretty man. And he was reminded how similar they were, he might have just found out he was a wolf but Sam had always been a shifter.

So he followed lead and stripped down, slipping into bed and holding up the covers in invitation. There was a slight pause from Sam at that, as his glance traveled up and down Alcide, and with a slight blush he moved under the covers. 

They fit together perfectly. He nudged Sam onto his side so he could press against his back, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him close enough that he was covering Sam’s body with his own. Protective and possessive, but Sam only relaxed further into it. It was just a few minutes before his breathing slowed, deep and easy, and he was asleep. 

It settled something in Alcide, that Sam was so relaxed with him, that the man felt so safe and he closed his own eyes, nose full of Sam’s scent. It was a pleasant way to fall asleep, one that he could definitely get used to. 


End file.
